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Not as agile as the Super Hornet nor as fast as the Typhoon? Don’t you believe it, says Lockheed Martin test pilot Billie Flynn. He will put the F-35A through its paces at Le Bourget this week, proving that the aircraft is more maneuverable than any he has flown, he says, including Boeing’s F/A-18, the Eurofighter, and his own company’s F-16 Viper.“After 10 years since first flight, with our first opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities and the maneuverability of the F-35, we are going to crush years of misinformation about what this aircraft is capable of doing,” Flynn said in an interview with Aviation Week.

The F-35’s maneuverability is all the more impressive because, unlike the F-16s that perform at air shows, the Joint Strike Fighter flying the demonstration this week is fully combat-ready. Flynn’s F-35A will move easily through complex aerial maneuvers loaded with everything it needs to go to war.

“All of those airplanes that do air shows—the Hornet, Viper—they are all slicked off without all the external stores,” Flynn said. “They are a party trick at an air show, versus a combat-configured F-22 or F-35.”

The flight demonstration is carefully scripted to highlight the kinematic capabilities of the F-35A, particularly its slow-speed handling qualities, said Flynn. He will start with an afterburner takeoff, almost immediately pointing his nose to the sky and letting the aircraft climb away essentially vertically. This impressive move is unique to the F-22 and the F-35, he said.

Billie Flynn aims to silence the skeptics with complex F-35A demo flights at the Paris Air Show.Billie Flynn aims to silence the skeptics with complex F-35A demo flights at the Paris Air Show.Next, Flynn will reverse back in front of the crowd, and perform a “square loop” to show the aircraft’s instantaneous pitch capability and high angle-of-attack (AOA) maneuverability. Then he will turn around, reverse back in front of the crowd, and perform a slow-speed, high-AOA pass. Afterward, he will light the afterburner and fly straight up into the sky once again.

From there, Flynn will pull up vertically in front of the crowd and execute a maximum AOA “power loop,” where the aircraft flips on its back—another signature Raptor move. Then he will initiate a spiral at 50 degrees AOA, called a “pedal turn,” which he says will be the most impressive part of the entire routine.

After reversing again in front of the crowd, the last move is a maximum-G, 360-deg. turn, which highlights the maximum-rate, minimum-radius-turn capability of the aircraft, Flynn said. The F-35 in its current 3i configuration is limited to 7g; when the fighter gets its full war-fighting capability with the final 3F software, it will be able to pull 9gs.

“This aircraft down low in this environment is an absolute monster,” said Flynn. ”It is more powerful, it is more aggressive than any of us, including those of us that fly the F-35, would have imagined before we began this flight-demo process.”

The high show does not include the F-35 opening its weapon-bay doors, as the F-22 does during its airshow routine. The low show, which the F-35 will perform if there is inclement weather or cloud ceiling, includes opening the weapon-bay doors, according to Lockheed spokesman Mark Johnson.

Lockheed’s F-35 airshow profile has been in the works for well over a year, according to Flynn. The team has conducted over 800 simulator runs to evaluate the profile, and Flynn began practicing in the aircraft at the company’s facility in Fort Worth, Texas, about a month ago.

The company has developed air show routines for all three F-35 variants—the U.S. Navy F-35C carrier variant and the U.S. Marine Corps F-35B vertical-takeoff-and-landing variant as well—but this year Flynn is focused on the U.S. Air Force F-35A version.

Flynn had to modify the routine to accommodate airspace restrictions unique to the Paris show, he said. Flying is limited laterally and vertically because of Le Bourget’s proximity to both to the city of Paris and Charles De Gaulle Airport. Flynn is also limited by time—he only has 6 min. for the routine at Le Bourget, where at most air shows he would have 10 min.

“We focused on the ‘wow’ factor and left out the elements of a routine that would be part of a non-Paris-type profile,” Flynn said. “You have to live inside very tight restrictive boundaries, but it still permits us to put on a show that I believe will squelch the critics once and for all.”

So how will the F-35 demonstration compare to the Raptor’s always-impressive routine? It’s very similar, Flynn said.

“We all love what the Raptor can do. I would say the F-35 and the F-22 both put on demonstrations that are unique to our fifth-gen maneuverability,” said Flynn. “But don’t forget, that’s not how we dominate—we dominate because of stealth and sensor fusion.”

The two F-35As from Hill AFB, Utah, arrived at Le Bourget Airport June 13 and will be maintained on-site by Air Force maintainers and security personnel. One aircraft will be flying, and one will be on static display.

The Kawasaki P-1 maritime patrol aircraft has made its Paris debut, as Tokyo eyes upgrade opportunities for the four-engined type.The Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force has 11 P-1s in service, and is expected to acquire up to 70. The aircraft will replace the venerable Lockheed Martin P-3C Orion in Japanese service, and Tokyo sees opportunities for the type to replace aging P-3Cs globally.About 90% of the aircraft and its systems are Japanese produced, says Takahiro Yoshida, a director in the project management division of Tokyo's Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Agency (ATLA).

While Kawasaki performed the overall systems integration, key systems were produced by Japanese stalwarts such as NAC, Fujitsu, Mitsubishi, and Toshiba.

Nonetheless, Yoshida says that Tokyo is interested in working with western companies on various upgrades for the P-1, in areas such as avionics and sensors. Major upgrades are planned for every ten years, with incremental upgrades to occur at shorter intervals.

The aircraft's distinguishing feature are its four IHI Corporation F7 engines. Captain Tomoyuki Tako, ATLA's programme manager for the aircraft, says the engines have a bypass ratio of 8:1. This, along with the P-1s large wing area, aids performance at low altitudes.

He declined to discuss specifics about the P-1s low flying characteristics, but says it can perform well below 500ft. For engines reduce the risks involved with an engine failure when the aircraft is operaing at low altitude. Tako says this particularly reduces the risks inherent in birdstrikes.

The aircraft is equipped with a range of sensors. It has forward and side-looking active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars, which can locate and track both surface and aerial targets.

In addition, it has an electro-optical/infrared sensor ball forward of the main landing gear. When not in operation, this equipment can be retracted to shield it from the jet's slipstream.

As the aircraft was designed specifically for the maritime mission, the cockpit features very large windows with excellent visibility.

Tako declined to discuss the capacity of the aircraft's weapons bay, but said that it can accommodate more than the P-3C – the Orion has capacity for eight weapons weighing a total of 9,100kg.

In addition, the P-1 can accommodate six air-to-surface missiles on wing-mounted pylons, although the aircraft on display has no hard points fixed.

Yoshida adds that Tokyo is interested in obtaining foreign customers for the aircraft, following changes in government policy about the export of defence equipment.

"We're not so much trying to promote sales of a product, but rather to work with partners to strengthen ties."

He adds that by its nature a sophisticated platform such as the P-1 will have a relatively small market. He says that any foreign buyers will need to have sophisticated capabilities already, as well as very tight information security systems.

Leonardo has taken the wraps off the most advanced version of its M-346, with the fighter attack (FA) standard to be capable of performing combat duties and also serving in an aggressor role.

On show in the company’s static display, the M-346FA can carry an array of air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles and precision-guided bombs. Its maximum weapons load will be more than 2t spread across seven stores stations, Leonardo says.

The aircraft also will be equipped with the company’s Grifo-346 radar and self-protection equipment, and a radar cross-section reduction kit featuring engine intake grids, a special coating for the canopy and radar-absorbent material on the wing leading edge can also be acquired.“Armament is our core business – we are experts in this,” says Leonardo’s chief test pilot, Enrico Scarabotto, who describes the evolution as part of a family concept for the M-346; already in service as an advanced jet trainer with the air forces of Israel, Italy, Poland and Singapore.The FA model also could provide aggressor training for air forces, with private companies which deliver such services described as being “enthusiastic” about the development.

“Many customers are interested,” Scarabotto says. “The aircraft has exceptional performance – with radar and self-defence it will be perfect.”Also making its debut is Leonardo’s single-engined M-345 basic trainer. First flown last December and the subject of an initial five-aircraft order from the Italian air force, the type has also been selected by a second nation, says head of programme management Emanuele Merlo. The undisclosed buyer could sign a production order before year-end.

Powered by a Williams International FJ44-4M-34 engine, the jet is touted as offering greater training potential than high-end turboprops, but with similar acquisition and through-life costs. Rome early this year signed an initial order for aircraft to be used at its academy at Lecce air base from late 2019, with its current planned commitment being for 45 examples.

Merlo says the company is seeing interest in the new model from nations in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East – including with the United Arab Emirates.

The Syrian Armed Forces have warned the U.S. of “serious repercussions” after a BoeingF/A-18E Super Hornet belonging to the U.S. Navy shot down a Syrian Sukhoi Su-22. The Soviet-era ground attack aircraft had dropped bombs close to U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) south of the town of Tabqah in Syria on June 18 and was “immediately shot down” by the Super Hornet, the Pentagon said.

The single-seat F/A-18 had been patrolling the area after Syrian government-backed forces attacked an SDF position in Ja’Din earlier in the day.

The Syrian government decried the incident in a statement and confirmed “the loss” of the Su-22 pilot. The Russian Ministry of Defense says in its own statement that the pilot ejected, but his fate is unknown.

The incident marks the first U.S. air-to-air takedown of a manned Syrian warplane since the U.S.-led intervention in Syria to combat the Islamic State terrorist group began in September 2014.

The shootdown comes after a U.S. Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle intercepted and destroyed an armed UAV controlled by “pro-regime forces,” which had been threatening U.S.-backed forces fighting in Syria on June 8. The UAV was reported as an Iranian-made Shahed-129, similar in size to the MQ-1.

In a statement about the Su-22 intercept, the combined joint task force leading Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) said in a statement that the U.S.-led coalition operating in Syria “will not hesitate” to defend itself or partner forces from any threat. It stresses that the coalition is not looking for a fight with forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad or his Russian backers, but would act if necessary.

The air-to-air engagement occurred at about 6:40 p.m. local time. Coalition aircraft were conducting a “show of force” against pro-Syrian regime forces that had been advancing on Ja’Din earlier 2 hr. earlier.

Russia was contacted by the U.S. via an established “deconfliction line” prior to the Su-22 shootdown to try to de-escalate the situation, CJTF-OIR says.Russia called the Su-22 shootdown a “cynical violation” of the Syrian Arab Republic’s sovereignty and claims proper deconfliction procedures were not followed. Moscow says that from now on, coalition aircraft flying west of the Euphrates River will be considered potential targets by Russian aircraft and surface-to-air missiles.

The Syrian government said in a statement that its aircraft crashed in the Resafa region of Syria. Damascus maintains its forces were targeting terrorists in the area and directly accuses the U.S. of supporting Daesh, the local name for the Islamic State.

This is the latest in a string of run-ins between U.S. and Syrian forces, the most spectacular being President Donald Trump’s Tomahawk cruise missile strike on Shayrat Airbase in April in retaliation for chemical weapon attacks on civilians by Syrian forces.

That attack, involving 59 missiles fired from U.S. Navy warships, destroyed several Su-22 and Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 aircraft of the Syrian Arab Air Force.

Despite more than 25 years of continuous U.S. military engagement in the Middle East, air-to-air engagement is quite rare. Dozens of remotely pilot aircraft have been shot down by various sides, but intercepts of manned warplanes by fighters have been minimal.

A Turkish Air Force F-16 sparked a diplomatic dispute in November 2015 when it shot down a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 conducting operations along the Syrian-Turkey border. The Russian pilot died and two Mil Mi-8 helicopters also came under attack.

Based on the FBO announcement by the US contracting authority, the number under price negotiation is between 440 and 448 aircraft over 3 lots (Lot 12, 13, and 14). Early contracts have already been awarded. This would take the aircraft on order, or pre/early orders to above 750 and annual production rates to above 150 (in 2020 or 21) out of the three final check out facilities in Texas, Cameri, Italy and Nagoya, Japan.

Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) is in the final stages of negotiating a deal worth more than $37 billion to sell a record 440 F-35 fighter jets to a group of 11 nations including the United States, two people familiar with the talks said.

This would be the biggest deal yet for the stealthy F-35 jet, set to make its Paris Airshow debut this week.

The sale represents a major shift in sales practices from annual purchases to more economic multi-year deals that lower the cost of each jet.

The pricing of the jets was still not final, although the average price of the 440 jets was expected to be $85 million, the people said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the negotiations publicly.

The multi-year deal for the fighters will consist of three tranches over fiscal years 2018-2020.

A Lockheed representative said the U.S. company does not discuss negotiations on contracts and said any deal involving a "block buy" would be announced by the U.S. government. A representative for the customers including the United States did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday.

Last week, representatives from 11 F-35 customer nations met in Baltimore, Maryland to discuss terms and toured a Northrop Grumman Corp (NOC.N) facility in Maryland that provides equipment for the jet. Those nations included Australia, Denmark, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Turkey, South Korea, Britain and the United States.

According to CNN, the pilot fired a AIM-9 but the dogfight missile was decoyed away by flares from the Su-22. The naval aviator switched to AIM-120 to shot down the Soviet-made jet.

The U.S. Navy said the pair of Super Hornets were flying near the town of Ja’Din, just south of Tabqah, Syria when they spotted the Syrian Su-22 approaching with weapons on the wings pylons. They made a head-butt maneuver, fired flares to try to get the Syrian jet to leave the scene.

However, the Su-22 proceed to drop its munitions and the Americans then took the step to shot it down.

That isn't very surprising since HOBS and other close in capabilities on the AMRAAM have been improved with the C5+ variants and beyond. Many USAF strike fighter squadrons have been increasing their 2 AMRAAM with strike load configurations of late. The USN to the best of knowledge has deployed the Aim-120D only to the Pacific theater so it is quite likely that the AMRAAM variant they launched was the C5 or C7.

F-35 PAS-17 program status update. Key production take-aways - LRIP-1 through LRIP-11 - 448 aircraft on order out of which 220+ have been delivered. LRIP-12 through LRIP 14 currently under negotiation (preliminary funding awarded to lockheed and co) covering 440+ aircraft for a total of closer to 890 aircraft on order or under negotiations.

It has overtaken the F-22 in terms of total airframes delivered, and taken over the Super Hornet / Growler programs in terms of the overall program of record once pre-produciton contracts are factored in.

Raytheon announced at the Paris Air Show on 19 June that its family of active electronically scanned-array (AESA) radars for fighter aircraft have clocked up more than one million operational flight hours with the US Air Force, US Navy, and four international customers. The company additionally noted that it had delivered its 1,000th production AESA radar unit in May.

Raytheon's AESA radars have been the primary targeting sensor on Boeing F-15 Eagle and F/A-18 Super Hornet fighters, as well as Boeing E/A-18 Growler electronic attack aircraft, in every US air combat action since the mid-2000s, including operations 'Enduring Freedom', 'Iraqi Freedom', 'Odyssey Dawn', 'Unified Protector', and 'Inherent Resolve'.

The Raytheon APG-79 AESA radar was described as the "sensor backbone of the US Navy F/A-18 [Super Hornet and Growler] fleet" during a company briefing on air dominance at the air show, while the APG-63(V)3 is on board USAF F-15Cs, Republic of Singapore Air Force F-15SGs and Royal Saudi Air Force F-15SAs. The APG-82(V)1, meanwhile, is the company's AESA sensor on the F-15E Strike Eagle.

The two additional international customers remain undisclosed.

Speaking at the air show on 19 June, Joe Beissner, senior manager for business development within Raytheon's Space & Airborne Systems business and a former USAF fighter pilot, described the jump in capability from mechanically scanned-array radars to AESA units as a "night and day-type improvement". Because they have no moving parts, AESA radars also have a significantly greater mean time between failures compared with their mechanically scanned predecessors.

Single-engined AMCA to carry what weaponry in what size of internal weapons bay? AMCA should instead be leveraged into a stealth bomber,far more useful. Instead,an SE stealth LCA could be faster developed,scrapping the LCA Mk-2. That would leapfrog sev. years of another similar new programme and make thew entire programme more relevant.

NASA will soon ask companies to bid for a contract to build a supersonic X-plane whose preliminary design review was completed on 23 June by Lockheed Martin.

The Low Boom Flight Demonstrator (LBFD) is scheduled to begin flying in 2021 after NASA selects the manufacturer early next year, the agency says.

The supersonic, single-engined jet is intended to prove that new designs tools developed by NASA and industry can muffle the thunderous double-boom produced by a supersonic shockwave to a non-annoying thump. Such data could be used to ask regulators in the USA and Europe to overturn restrictions on flying aircraft at supersonic speeds over populated areas.

It also will serve as a testbed for other technologies. Instead of a forward windscreen, the X-plane pilot will view the aircraft’s forward path from a ultra high-definition video produced by a camera installed in a fuselage-mounted fairing, says David Richwine, who managed the preliminary design project called the Quiet Supersonic Transport (QueSST).

“NASA plans to provide an eXternal Vision System (XVS) and other sensor technologies (with an equivalent level of safety and performance) in place of the forward-facing window,” Richwine tells FlightGlobal.

A newly-released rendering of Lockheed’s preliminary design reveals other features of the highly-swept, delta-wing jet. A row of eight vortex generators are arrayed over the top of the fuselage just aft of the cockpit and a set of moving forward canard surfaces.

The main feature is the extended nose section, which is shaped to attenuate the passing of the supersonic shockwave as the aircraft accelerates through Mach 1.0 speed. NASA’s noise limit for the X-plane’s design is a 75PLdb, a measure of perceived loudness equivalent to a conversation in a restaurant. By contrast, the BAC/Aerospatiale Concorde was measured with a perceived loudness of 105PLdb.

The aft-mounted engine is placed atop the area-ruled fuselage, supporting a vertical tail. The preliminary design calls for an engine sized to provide about 20,000lb-thrust, Richwine says. Lockheed used the GE Aviation F414 engine as the baseline for design studies, but several candidates for the propulsion system are available for the X-plane, Richwine says.

Lockheed and NASA will continue to finalise the preliminary design, using data from a forthcoming static inlet performance test and a low-speed wind tunnel test, Richwine adds.

GE Aviation has made a mutually beneficial arrangement with the US government to accommodate the environmentally controlled teardown of hardware and recovery of strategic alloys in exchange for credits on future engine/parts purchases.

The Military Engine Reclamation Program is an incentivized process for GE’s US Navy and Air Force customers to garner financial value from retiring GE products in their fleets, including F404, F414, TF39, TF34, T700 F110, F101 and F118 engine parts.

“The Engine Reclamation Program initiated by Naval Air Systems Command and GE Aviation is an exchange-based cost reduction initiative that required virtually no upfront investment, and delivered a near immediate payoff”, said Antonio Miguelez, Director of Propulsion and Power Engineering at Naval Air Systems Command in a statement Monday.

Beyond the benefit of life cycle cost savings for Naval Aviation Enterprise Programs, other benefits include reduction to material sourcing risk of strategic metals, much lower workload demand than conventional material disposal processes, and the environmental advantages that come from recycling.

Military customers receive an exchange-allowance credit in return for the environmentally controlled teardown of graded alloy material including platinum, rhenium and gold that is extracted from their decommissioned hardware. These credits are then used toward the purchase of GE engines, modules or parts.

3D printing is coming of age in numerous ways. On a large scale, MIT researchers built a 50-foot-wide, 12-foot tall igloo in just 13 hours. They've also debuted the first completely 3D-printed rocket engine. On a much smaller level, our own Sean Buckley printed a little d-pad for his Nintendo Switch, while medical researchers have produced a 3D-printed patch that can heal scarred heart tissue. Now we're seeing this technology coming to the industrial world with a new laser-powered metal 3D printer from GE.

GE Additive is a new business under the larger GE umbrella. It is developing what it calls "the world's largest laser-powered 3D printer" to create parts that fit within one cubic meter cubic of space. "The machine will 3D print aviation parts suitable for making jet engine structural components and parts for single-aisle aircraft," said GE Additive's Mohammad Ehteshami in a statement. "It will also be applicable for manufacturers in the automotive, power, and oil and gas industries."

Additive printers fuse fine layers of powdered metal with a laser beam to print objects. The new process could make complex parts like jet engine components easier and less costly to make than traditional casting and welding techniques. GE Aviation is already printing fuel nozzles for jet engines that will be found in Airbus, Boeing and narrow-body jets. GE has a prototype large-scale metal prnter, called ATLAS, that can print 2D objects up to 1 meter long, but the new one will extend that to a third dimension. Beta versions of the new printer should be ready by the end of this year, according to Ehteshami, with a production version slated for 2018.

I am told someone in India is using additive printing to build "cage"s to grow tissues in human spines, in India.

The F-35’s premier performance in the skies above Le Bourget Airport is Lockheed Martin's answer to years of assertions that the fifth-generation stealth fighter is a waste of taxpayer money and will be no match for potential adversaries.

Now, the company hopes to turn the page on the F-35’s checkered past and shift focus to what it does best: fight.

Lockheed test pilot Billie Flynn, who flew the much-anticipated F-35 aerial demonstration at the Paris Air Show, showcased the capabilities of the controversial new fighter in a way that has never before been seen. The F-35’s slow-speed maneuverability and the power of Pratt & Whitney’s 40,000-lb.-thrust engine were on full display, with the aircraft climbing vertically into the sky and gently falling into a controlled, 360-deg. pedal turn.

The F-35 is not as agile as the twin-engine, thrust-vectoring F-22 Raptor, which is designed for air-to-air combat. But pilots say when the F-35 is flown in the way it is designed to be flown, it is a formidable dogfighter—far more so than its predecessor, the F-16, or any other fourth-generation fighter.

“This aircraft, down low in this environment, is an absolute monster,” says Flynn. “It is more powerful, it is more aggressive than any of us, including those of us [who] fly the F-35, would have imagined.”

“People are seeing the airplane do things nobody thought it could do,” says U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. (ret.) David Berke, who has flown the F-35B, Raptor, F-16 and F/A-18 Hornet. “It proves that when the airplane is flown in the way it’s supposed to be flown, it is a dominating within-visual-range platform.”

All this can be done by an aircraft that was actually designed for the air-to-ground mission. As former Air Combat Command chief Gen. Herbert Carlisle liked to say: “The F-35 is the best air-to-air platform in the world, except for the F-22. The F-22 is the best air-to-ground platform in the world, except for the F-35.”

After more than a decade of controversy over the F-35’s cost, schedule and technical challenges, the Paris debut marked the culmination of a year of triumphs for the stealth fighter. The Marine Corps F-35B made its international debut at two air shows in the UK last summer, and during its flight demonstrations brought the crowd to a standstill with its signature hover and vertical landing. The U.S. Air Force declared its F-35As operational in August, and successfully completed the first European deployment in April; meanwhile, the Marine Corps permanently moved a squadron of F-35Bs to Iwakuni, Japan.

Lockheed Martin now aims to turn that momentum into sales. The Pentagon is rumored to be on the verge of a multibillion-dollar international block buy for hundreds of F-35s, and the type is attracting more potential customers around the world.

Orlando Carvalho, Lockheed’s vice president for aeronautics, says during the Paris Air Show he spoke with delegations from countries across Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East about possibly buying the F-35.

“There is generally a drumbeat now around the world about the F-35 that says, ‘Hey, this is a very real airplane, this is a very fifth-gen airplane,’” says Carvalho. “I think many air forces around the world are saying, ‘Hey, we need to take a look at this.’”

Those air forces likely watched Flynn’s Paris performance closely to see if the F-35 truly dominates the skies as Lockheed says. But it is no longer just the manufacturer that is singing the fighter’s praises—U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Scott Gunn of the 33rd Fighter Wing explains that each of Flynn’s maneuvers showcased the F-35’s offensive capabilities, demonstrating how it dominates in a tactical scenario.

The full afterburner takeoff and almost immediate shift into a vertical climb demonstrated the brute power of the engine, allowing the pilot to reach altitude and engage the threat faster, says Gunn. Next, the “square loop” flown by Flynn showed the aircraft’s instantaneous pitch capability and high angle-of-attack (AOA) maneuverability—at the top of the square, Flynn pulled to a nearly 50-deg. AOA, flew level inverted and then repeated the move on the way down.

“If you can go up over the top, and the other aircraft that you are fighting has to stay level, well, then you buy yourself a lot of advantage,” says Gunn. “The ability to point the nose and have the aircraft flying so that high AOA capability allows you to get into positions where other aircraft couldn’t.”

Next, Flynn performed an impressive slow-speed, high-AOA pass, then lit the afterburner and used the power of the engine to fly straight up into the sky once again.

“It’s basically putting the brakes on and letting the enemy fly by,” says Gunn. “Then the F-35’s ability to power up again puts [it] above the opponent and puts [it] in a highly advantageous position.”

From there, Flynn pulled up vertically in front of the crowd and executed a controlled, maximum AOA “power loop,” where the aircraft flips on its back. Then he initiated a spiral at 50-deg. AOA, called a “pedal turn,” which demonstrates the F-35’s slow-speed handling.

“[With] many aircraft at that higher AOA [and] slower speed, the jet’s nose points wherever it’s going to point, wherever the aircraft decides. With this jet, I get to decide,” says Gunn.

After reversing again in front of the crowd, the last move was a maximum-G, 360-deg. turn, which highlighted the maximum-rate, minimum-radius-turn capability of the aircraft. The F-35 in its current 3i configuration is limited to 7g; when the fighter reaches its full war-fighting capability with the final 3F software, it will be able to pull 9gs.

Of course, the F-35 is never supposed to get into a dogfight in the first place. The fighter’s combination of stealth, sophisticated radar and sensors, and suite of advanced weapons such as the AIM-9X air-to-air missile are designed to find and fix the target before the enemy even knows the F-35 is there.

But it is in the multidomain battlefield of the future that the F-35 will truly prove its mettle, say pilots.

“Before, where we would have one advanced threat and we would put everything we had—F-16s, F-15s, F-18s, missiles—we would shoot everything we had at that one threat, just to take it out. Now [with the F-35] we are seeing three or four of those threats at a time,” says Lt. Col. George Watkins, commander of the Air Force’s first operational F-35 squadron.

“Just between [the F-35] and the [F-22] Raptor, we are able to geolocate [threats], precision-target them, and then we are able to bring the fourth-generation assets in behind us after those threats are neutralized,” Watkins says. “It’s a whole different world out there for us now.”

Raytheon Missile Systems (RMS) is expected to leverage its expanded research in hypersonic weapons technologies to inform the development of its next-generation air-to-air missile solution as a follow-on to the current AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) capability.

Over the past four years, Raytheon Company has invested in excess of USD500 million in Advanced Missile Systems - the growth engine and front-end product line at RMS - for research into, and development of, advanced kinetic and non-kinetic weapon systems technologies, Dr Thomas Bussing, vice-president, Advanced Missile Systems, Raytheon Missile Systems said.

"Within the hypersonic weapons domain, we've invested heavily in advanced sensors, kill vehicle design, and in computers - in particular guidance computers, which are required to process enormous amounts of big data, and from that data, pull out relevant information to identify targets and threats, and then engage those targets and threats - and they also have to survive in a very challenging environment. We've also invested significant funding in materials, which, in high-speed weapon systems, have to survive very stressing thermal environments. So across the board, we are basically looking for areas where these technologies can game change systems, and therefore create an asymmetric advantage for our warfighters," he added.

Some of the technologies derived from these and other hypersonic weapons development programmes will inform Raytheon's USD116.4 million technology maturation and risk reduction (TMRR) solution for the US Army's Long-Range Precision Fires - now designated DeepStrike - programme.

RMS is, however, currently involved in two declared US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) hypersonic weapons development programmes. In April 2015, it was awarded a USD20.5 million contract to develop and demonstrate the technology to enable air-launched hypersonic boost glide systems under the DARPA/US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Tactical Boost Glide initiative; later, in October 2016, it was awarded a USD174.7 million contract for similar activities under the DARPA/AFRL Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept (HAWC). Lockheed Martin has also been awarded similar contracts for both programmes.

Bussing declined to discuss Raytheon's progress on either programme in detail, but noted, "Raytheon has leveraged hypersonic weapon technologies before - the SM-6 and SM-3 class of weapon systems are an example - but in the last four years the company has made significant investment in tactical boost glide [TBG] weapons and hypersonic air breathing weapons, and all the sub-systems associated with those weapons. There are many technologies within these systems and they are at varying levels of maturity, with some still in development. However, as a general statement, certainly within Raytheon, the maturity of tour hypersonic weapon technologies has gone from a low level to a relatively high level of maturity within the past four years."

Bussing said that the company expects to fly a demonstrator from one/or both of the TBG or HAWC programmes in "the near-to-mid-term".

In terms of the AIM-120 AMRAAM/AIM-9X product line, we are looking at the follow-on generation for these and other weapon systems. Part of the interest in investing as we have across the hypersonic weapons space is that you can leverage that suite of game-changing technologies to deliver, we believe, some very unique capabilities - not just game-changing, but asymmetric enablers and differentiators. And a future hypersonic air-to-air application is certainly part of that trade space.

As a FYI Only and since we do not yet have a twin-engine thread. This article by Shiv Aroor is from Nov, 2016. Note the (liberal?) use of "AMCA". And, the mention of "100-200" - that in addition to the "100-200" for the F-16.

Combat jet season in India has begun anew. With a deal for Dassault fighters finalized, the nation is back in the hunt for a medium multirole combat aircraft to be made in India for its air force and potentially for export customers. Boeing Defense Space & Security has bided its time since the last contest collapsed in 2015, reemerging for another chance at selling its F/A-18 aircraft with a uniquely aggressive pitch that goes beyond this immediate competition.

Like Lockheed Martin, Saab and Dassault and Eurofighter, Boeing is offering to build a brand-new production line in India for its Advanced Super Hornet. But the company has also yoked the prospects of the F/A-18 in India to the country’s concept for a fifth-generation fighter jet—the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA)—currently in an early definition stage. An engineering and management development phase is expected to begin in 2017.

Boeing says it is in “multiple stakeholder discussions” with India’s defense ministry, air force and research and technology shop, to make the AMCA a seamless progression of a potential Indian-built F/A-18. Dan Gillian, Boeing’s vice president for the Super Hornet, laid out the company’s three-pronged pitch to a group of Indian journalists in St. Louis.

The idea starts with Boeing winning the right to build a Super Hornet production facility for the “Make-in-India Fighter contest” for the remaining medium multirole combat aircraft, which the country is likely to produce in the early 2020s. Boeing proposes that India use the same prospective facility to build and develop the AMCA for an early capability in the late 2020s.

The company is also making itself available as a technology partner on the AMCA program to help accelerate crucial development in stealth, supersonic weapons release, advanced networking and fusion, advanced integrated propulsion and flight control.

Finally, and significantly, Boeing and its Super Hornet partner GE Aviation have proposed to Indian agencies that the GE F414 enhanced performance engine be considered to power the AMCA, offering a substantive mode of commonality with the F/A-18 build program. The GE F414 engine was chosen to power India’s Tejas Mk.2 Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), though a contract has been stalled, among other things, by a lack of clarity on the requirement for the Mk.2. The Mk.2 is an upgraded version of the LCA that India’s Defense Research and Development Organization-led (DRDO) teams are developing without firm interest from the Indian air force.

There are significant hurdles and variables to address, however, chiefly the fact that the Make-In-India program for the moment specifically calls for a single-engine platform. While Boeing India President Pratyush Kumar believes a parallel line of interest is anticipated based on an internal assessment by the company that India will need 100-200 twin-engine fighters, there is no official word from the Indian defense ministry yet. In the event of a twin-engine contest, the airframer will have to convince the Indian government that adding an inventory type by building the Super Hornet makes more sense than building the Rafale, 36 of which India signed up for in flyaway condition earlier this year.

Plus, significant elements of the advanced F/A-18—including an increased thrust engine and conformal fuel tanks—are not programs of record yet. But Boeing believes they will be by the time the government makes a decision on which fighter it will build in India.

The AMCA, which has shifted shape a few times over the last few years, is by far the country’s most ambitious aircraft development program and is intended to be avowedly Indian. The priority of getting the smaller Tejas into squadron service with the air force has kept resources thin for the concept stealth jet program. With the defense ministry proclaiming more than once that the Indian Kaveri engine will power the AMCA, it remains unclear whether DRDO and the defense ministry will pursue a foreign engine partnership. Boeing’s decision to target the AMCA and not the Tejas, which has entered service with the air force, is significant.

“Our focus is now on a global base,” says Kumar, indicating that Boeing has already begun to expand its supplier base in the country beyond its 30 Tier-1 suppliers and 130 Tier-2 and 3 suppliers. Parts of the Apache, Chinook and F/A-18 are currently built by Indian private and state-owned companies.

Boeing’s pitch heats up a field of play that has already been stirred up aggressively. Lockheed Martin, which likely sees the Indian contest as a final chance to keep the F-16 fighter line alive, has offered to move production lock, stock, and barrel to India to service the huge existing Viper support requirement around the world. Saab has announced its offer of gallium-nitride radar technology to sweeten a deal to make the Gripen E in India.

And if India keeps its AMCA program on track, it will almost definitely mean that the country would truncate its separate fifth-generation fighter aircraft purchase of Russian T-50s. India and Russia continue to struggle through negotiations on a research and development contract for that joint-development effort.

Boeing just lost funding for the Enhanced F414 engine as the US Navy won't fund it as part of the block III order that is currently expected to be for around 80 aircraft. It will likely come as a stand alone project next decade.

I do not follow such programs very closely. But the GE enhanced engine not being part of the Block III, if I am right, has more to do with when the USN wants the Block IIIs. ???? Boeing claims they may produce them as early as 2018. The engine will certainly take longer to develop. {But, what I found very, very interesting with the Block III is that they lean a great deal more towards a networked air craft than stealth. With plans to work with the F-35 I guess.}

Secondly, I think the "GE F414 enhanced engine" being worked on in the US and that in India are two separate, unrelated efforts, with what seems to be with a common name. I suspect there will be some cross pollination, but other than that they should be two distinct engines. I hope, as time goes by, they provide a proper name to distinguish between the two.

Furthermore, I am more interested in the dynamics of the proposals to India. For both the F-16 and the F-18. Not so concerned about US centric projects.

The engine was a program Boeing offered to have included as part of block III but the engine retrofits would have come in at a later date. The USN has not asked for an enhanced engine yet and probably won't until later in the next decade when a more serious upgrade is performed as the bulk of the F-18 fleet comes into the depots to get their service life extended and upgraded.

The networking portion is simply Boeing marketing spin. They tried peddling a low observable configuration that as a penetrating platform was of no use to anyone serious about strike so in the absence of any serious interest there they simply took the TTNT based comms node that the USN funded for the Growler program and added it to the block III Rhino. The F-35 will also get a TTNT interface layered to its CNI suite since its mostly a software program there, but more about getting it to the Super Hornet fleet where it should have been from the start since they should have included it in block II.

But yes Boeing has changed its marketing strategy from one that was confrontational and peddled the F-18 as an alternative to the F-35 to one where they are seeking investments to enhance the F-18 so that it can work better alongside the F-35.

The block III just gets the networking data capability of the Growler which is depicted in the 'big data pipe' in the graphic above.

Secondly, I think the "GE F414 enhanced engine" being worked on in the US and that in India are two separate, unrelated efforts, with what seems to be with a common name.

There are a set of upgrades that have been worked upon on the F404/414 family and all of those have been funded by the USN or other DOD agencies. There hasn't been any work funded by any outside customer that I have come across but this could change with the KF-X and its propulsion requirements since the contract is currently under negotiation iirc. I haven't come across any advanced engine development work funded through the Indian MOD or as a partnership. Currently these are just discussions from publicly available data.

Furthermore, I am more interested in the dynamics of the proposals to India. For both the F-16 and the F-18. Not so concerned about US centric projects.

It is the US centric investments that would be leveraged by these players and offered to India. Majority of what is on offer as part of the F-18 enhancements is dependent on home customer support. Without securing enhanced F414 funds from the USN neither BA nor GE will offer it standard to the IN. It will only be offered as a CRAD opportunity. Same with other potential features and much the same as SAAB wants to spin off an internal S&T project into an export customer funded and driven CRAD.

According to a report by the Russian news agency TASS on 20 June, Russia and China are about to enter an agreement on protection of intellectual property on rocket and space technology during the upcoming visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to China in late June. It was first reported in July 2015 that China is interested in buying Russia’s RD-180 dual-combustion chamber 400 t-thrust engines for its future super-heavy-lift launch vehicle, as a source familiar with the situation told Interfax-AVN, possibly referring to the proposed Chang Zheng-9 (CZ-9, Long March 9). The CZ-9 rocket, which is still in its pre-research stage, will be comparable in size and performance to the U.S. Space Launch System (SLS), capable of delivering up to 140,000 kg payload to LEO and up to 50,000 kg payload to Lunar Transit Orbit.However, the RD-180 is only one of the options being considered for the CZ-9’s propulsion. According to China Daily, Academy of Aerospace Propulsion Technology (AAPT) of the China Aerospace Science & Technology Corporation (CASC) consortium is currently developing a 500 t-thrust LOX/Kerosene engine and a 200 t-thrust LOX/LH2 engine that will be used on the future super heavy-lift rocket. It is likely that the RD-180 acquisition will be running in parallel with the indigenous development project, in case one of them fall through.The most capable rocket engine developed by China is the YF-100, which is being used on all three series of the country’s new generation launch vehicles: the CZ-5, CZ-6 and CZ-7. Like the RD-180, the YF-100 is also a stage combustion cycle engine burning the LOX/Kerosene bi-propellant. However, the engine can only produce a maximum thrust of 122 t. The YF-100 has been developed from the technology of the Russian RD-120 engine, examples of which was obtained by China in the 1990s. Development of the YF-100 began in the early 2000s and It took the Chinese space industry over a decade to fully digest the RD-120 technology.Nevertheless, China’s attempt to obtain more powerful rocket engines and develop a super heavy-lift launch vehicle is a reflection of growing ambition in expanding its space programme, which already includes robotic lunar landing and sample return missions by 2018, the construction of a permanent space station in LEO by 2022, and a Mars probe mission around 2021. Once the CZ-9 rocket becomes available, currently speculated to be around 2025, China will possess a launch capability enough to support a manned lunar landing mission, as well as other missions beyond Earth orbit.

Zynda, I haven't been following the developments with the US or NATO AWACS fleet very closely but I think the new blocks focused primarily on mission computer overhaul, radar/IFF components, cockpit upgrades and upgrades to its data links to handler higher speeds and more data. I haven't come across a decent comprehensive write up on it but I believe this was the main focus of the more recent upgrades. Here are a few lines from a Jane's article form last year but I will post more if I run into a comprehensive list.

Building on earlier Block 20/25 and Block 30/35 efforts, the Block 40/45 is essentially a mission computing systems upgrade that covers hardware, in the form of a new suite of current state-of-the-art flat-screen computers, as well as the necessary software. This takes the aircraft very much into a Windows type of environment, enhancing the system's networking capability while improving the aircraft's reliability and lowering life-cycle costs.

In addition, the upgrade will provide for increased processing power to enable better operation of the fleet's advanced battle management tools, such as Automatic Air Tasking Orders and Airspace Co-ordination Order updates. The aircraft's Multi-Sensor Integration (MSI) process, which automatically integrates data from on- and off board sources such as radar and identification friend or foe (IFF) systems, electronic support measures and Link 16, is also upgraded under the process, with the MSI's open system and lean architecture enabling rapid software upgrades and requiring less hardware.

Although the Block 40/45 process reduces the amount of hardware needed on board the aircraft, it actually increases from 10 to 14 the number of mission system operator workstations available in the main cabin.

Boeing started flight testing a Block 40/45 aircraft in July 2006, with flight testing of the mission systems beginning in April 2007. Flight testing was completed in August 2008 and an initial operating capability (IOC) was declared in April 2014. Only six aircraft are currently under contract to be upgraded, although a full-rate production contract for the entire E-3B/C fleet is expected soon, with completion set for 2020.

As part of the upgrade the USAF is also replacing the E-3's AN/APX-103C radar with the AN/UPX-40, which was designed to eliminate ground clutter to better detect, identify and track low-flying aircraft. The first E-3 was fitted with the radar in mid-2015 and eight more installations are planned for 2016, with all aircraft set to receive the new radar by 2020.

The Block 40/45 upgraded platform, dubbed the E-3G, is now entering USAF service and actually made its combat debut over the Middle East on 18 November 2015. Speaking to IHS Jane's at the recent 'Red Flag' exercise in the United States, Captain Tyler Vansant, senior director deputy chief of weapons and tactics with the 963rd Airborne Air Control Squadron (AACS) out of Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, said that the E-3G has vastly superior human-machine interface and playback capabilities, making for a "force multiplier" in multi-asset exercises and missions.

Further to the Block 40/45 effort, the USAF is to put its aircraft through the Diminishing manufacturing sources Replacement of Avionics for Global Operations and Navigation (DRAGON) cockpit modernisation plan that was developed for the NATO fleet. This programme replaces the original analogue 707 cockpit with that of a modern airliner, including liquid-crystal displays and new communications and navigation equipment. This will not only resolve obsolescence issues, but will make the fleet compliant with the latest global air-traffic management (GATM) standards.

Both the USAF and NATO are to run their DRAGON modernisation programmes concurrently, with the first aircraft from each fleet currently going through the process at Boeing Field near Seattle. These initial aircraft should be delivered back to their respective operators later in 2016, with the remainder following thereafter.

The US Navy is the Lead Service for the AGM-88 family of weapons, with the latest US Navy-developed version, the AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) now in ser vice with the US Navy, the US Marine Corps and Italian Air Force. Developed and built by Orbital ATK (Northridge, CA) with Italian partner MBDA (Rome, Italy), the AARGM offers considerable improvements and capabilities over the standard HARM.

With an IOC in 2012, AARGM incorporates an advanced digital anti-radiation homing (ARH) sensor with improved frequency coverage, GPS/Inertial navigation, as well as an integrated, millimeter wave (mmW)-radar seeker for terminal guidance. A digital terrain elevation database (DTED)-aided GPS/ INS restricts the missile's impact zone to prevent collateral damage. It also includes an organic in-cockpit emitter targeting and situational awareness capability. The weapon system also has a weapons-impact-assessment transmitter which provides information prior to impact for additional situation al awareness. The 54-inch-long missile can be carried externally by F/A-18, Tornado, EA-18G, F-16, EA-5B, and F-35 aircraft.

As described by Mike Stuart, Director Weap ons and Advanced Programs Business Development, Orbital ATK Defense Electronic Systems Division (Northridge, CA), "If you look at how AARGM first evolved (in the 2000/2001 timeframe), it was initially a strictly ARH-kind of approach involving a purely GPS-type of solution that would ensure restricted and controlled target areas. But, the Navy said, 'Suppression is great, but by turning on and off their radars, adversaries are still maintaining effective ness, and we need to be able to hit those targets.' Add to that the evolution of GPS jammers, together with the possibility of also adding a millimeter-wave targeting capability, and the preference for destruction vs. suppression took hold at that point." CAPT Albert Mousseau, Program Man ager for Direct and Time Sensitive Strike Weapons (PMA-242) at Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) in Patuxent River, MD, says, "It really comes down to each Service's view of the requirement, but the DON recognized that the problem (with strictly suppression) is that you have to keep going back every day, or whenever there's a mission, and force them into that mode, so the threat is still there. Because of that, the Navy opted to pur sue ways to transition, not so much away from suppression, but toward an ensured destructive capability, so we didn't have to address the same threat repeatedly."

The ultimate approach was to incorporate GPS-specificity benefits to restrict and maintain the weapon's focus within a specified target area, which, as Captain Mousseau says, would not only prevent unintended collateral damage, but also improve error rates and allow the ARH seeker to home in on emissions quicker and with more accuracy. "And, by then also adding the millimeter- wave seeker, if the target radar system does shut down, you still have an active seeker that can steer to wherever you believe the target to be, and prosecute from that perspective. The threat sys tem no longer has that sanctuary."

Says Stuart, "All programs evolve as the threat evolves, and as such, when seekers could handle the types of threats they faced at the time, and were able to track and engage them, people were okay with them. The US Navy saw the need to move on from the legacy HARM and migrated to a digital receiver set with a conformal array and, most importantly from a terminal-guidance perspective, added a millimeter- wave, end-game targeting radar." Says Captain Mousseau, "This fusion allowed for improved effectiveness to meet the requirement that was defined in the capabilities document - specifically targeting or looking to counter a threat's observed abilities to shut down when they know that there are anti-radiation missiles in the air." Orbital ATK is still producing the AGM-88E AARGM for both the US and Italy, and it will be for some time. The company just delivered systems from its full-rate production (FRP) 3 contract and is now manufacturing missiles for delivery under the FRP 4 contract. Captain Mousseau says the Navy has already awarded through FRP 5 and "we will continue to award for the next several years until we meet our quantity requirement for baseline AARGM. We're also anticipating delivery of a software-only upgrade to the weaponin 2017 to further enhance its capability." The FY2017 budget re quest includes $4.2 million of research and development funding for the AARGM Block 1 follow-on development and test program. It also includes $178.2 million for AARGM weapons production of 253 AARGM rounds including captive training missiles.

NEXT-GENERATION HARM - THE AARGM-ER

Launched in FY2016, the US Navy's AARGM Extended Range (AARGM-ER) program is aimed at the next evolution of the HARM and the AGM-88E AARGM itself, with the primary objective to provide the system with a longer-range capability. Says Captain Mousseau, "It's clear that the evolving threat has a range envelope into which we don't want to enter. We're seeing that across the board, not just in EW systems, but all of our weapon systems. One of the ways to deal with this is to extend the range of our weapons, and AARGM-ER is one example of where the DON will be pursuing that goal over the next several years.

Extending the AARGM's range not only provides improved survivability of the employing aircraft, but also survivability of the weapon itself as it gets into the terminal area. Right now, extended range is our biggest focus, and that means putting in a bigger back-end to support the front-end of the seeker." Legacy AGM-88 HARM missiles, as well as both the AGM-88E AARGM and AGM-88F HCSM, all have the same propulsion system, so their ranges are basically equivalent. The AARGM-ER, however, is to provide a substantial increase in range over all current systems. In February of this year, PEO (U&W), Direct and Time Sensitive Strike Weap ons Program Office (PMA-242), held an industry day to solicit information from potential sources to work with Orbital ATK to conduct risk identification and reduction activities for a new propulsion system for the AARGM-ER, and to subsequently develop the system. A Milestone B decision to enter Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) is expected in 2018.

In November 2016, the Navy awarded Orbital ATK a sole-source $14.3 million contract for engineering studies and de sign analyses of the AARGM front end, including assessments related to plat form-interface compliance, structural integrity, thermal capabilities, mmW performance, and overall ARH effectiveness. This work is also expected to be completed in May 2018, followed by a Milestone B decision. FY2016 RDT&E funds in the amount of $2.6 million were obligated to the effort at the time of award.

According to Captain Mousseau, the AARGM-ER program is continuing to follow the HARM modular design and modification model working with Orbital ATK to understand if there any modifications that will need to be made to the front end currently in production. "It's difficult to say if we're looking at changes at this point, but the expectation is that there will be a need to do some modifications. AARGM-ER will be operating in a different flight regime, which is why we're doing the design analysis. We want to make sure we understand what kind of technical challenges may be there, so we understand the risks and to help us allocate the appropriate resources to those risk areas to ensure that we can meet the delivery schedule of the weapon system by 2023." For its part, Raytheon has also submitted an AARGM-ER design concept and participated in the recent Industry Day event.

F-35 INTERNAL CARRIAGE

The AARGM-ER effort also includes modifying the design of the missile for internal carriage on both the F-35A and F-35C Lightning II aircraft. Although funding is currently not allocated for the actual integration effort, which will involve the F-35 program office, PMA-242 is working on the form/fit modifications that will be required. As described by CAPT Mousseau, "First off, the size of the current weapon system will need to be compressed in order for it to fit internally on the aircraft. AARGM is a bit too long. We'll also have to remove its mid-body wings, which will more than likely be moved to the aft end of the missile making it a tail- pellant? This is part of the rocket motor risk initiative engagement work going on with industry right now, and part of the front-end design analysis. As we gain understanding of the techni cal implications and risks, we'll need to maintain engagement with our resource sponsor to make sure they understand any potential impact on budget and schedule. AARGM-ER is not an acceler ated program, and we need to be smart about it, conducting kind of rolling en gineering reviews, so that we'll contin ue to inform our acquisition leadership as to any technical challenges that we'll need to address, so that by the time we get to the Milestone B decision in 2018, everyone will be well informed on the risks associated with the program."

Although Orbital ATK's Stuart recognizes that the Navy has not yet made an official determination, "continuing to pursue options, assessing the threat Looking ahead to the possibility of integrating the AARGM or AARGM-ER onto an unmanned aerial systems (UAS), Captain Mousseau says that's not currently part of their efforts. "The focus has been on manned platforms as of to day, and although I can't say what could potentially happen 12-months from now as we continue to learn more about what AARGM-ER will be dimensionally, I would submit, that any suitable UAS would have to able to handle a fairly heavy payload. The FY2017 budget request includes $43.1 million in RDT&E funding for AARGM-ER development. As to the number of systems that are expected to ultimately be procured, Captain Mousseau says, "We have a range that we've provided to industry, but there is no definitive number, as of yet." The AARGM program existing Italian partners are informed as part of the current MOA of the Navy's intention to upgrade the weapon system whereupon they can make a determination whether or not they wish to participate. To date, how ever, they are not a participant in the AARGM-ER program.

China’s Long March 5 rocket ran into trouble soon after blasting off at 1123 GMT (7:23 a.m. EDT) Sunday from the Wenchang space base in southern China. Check back shortly for a full report on today’s launch failure.

The U.S. has approved Australia’s request to acquire Gulfstream G550 executive jets modified into airborne intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and electronic warfare (AISREW) platforms. Up to five G550s worth $1.3 billion after conversion could be supplied, according to a foreign military sales (FMS) notification issued by the Defense Security and Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on June 26. L3 Communication Systems of Greenville, Texas, will be the system integrator and prime contractor.

L3’s Communications Mission Integration Division at Greenville, Texas, was awarded a $93.6 million contract by the U.S. Air Force in December 2015 for G550 procurement and maintenance for Australia. The country’s Department of Defence said then that the FMS contract covered the procurement and maintenance cost of two G550s.

The Australian 2016 Defence White Paper stated that the AISREW G550s “will be acquired in two tranches and incrementally upgraded to maintain commonality with the U.S.-developed systems for long-term supportability and to maintain interoperability.”

The White Paper also noted that the capability will “substantially enhance electronic warfare support to naval, air and land forces for operations in electromagnetic environments manipulated by hostile forces” while retaining “the operating cost, range and endurance benefits of a commercial airframe.”

AIN understands that the five AISREW G550s, which will be acquired under Project AIR 555, will be assigned to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Surveillance and Response Group and based at Edinburgh in South Australia.

The AISREW acquisition is one of several new planned investments to strengthen Australia’s ISR capabilities. The country is taking delivery of Boeing P-8A Poseidon aircraft and has ordered Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton HALE UAVs.

As the Austrian experience is illustrating, the life-cycle costs of this jet are much greater than what Eurofighter claimed. of course, Austria went in for an inferior fit without most of the requisites of a decent 4th gen fighter, to keep costs low, but looking at how badly Italy wants to get rids of its Tranche 1 Typhoons, one can tell that this is one high performance but expensive and rather useless jet. Even the costs of upgrading these (as the RAF found out) is touted to be too much to bother.

LONDON—Austria plans to phase out its fleet of Eurofighter Typhoons in favor of a lower-cost alternative.

Vienna said July 7 that it wants to get rid of its 15 Eurofighters and replace them—along with its aging fleet of Saab 105 training aircraft that also contribute to the country’s airspace security—with a single fleet of 18 supersonic-capable fighters that could enter service in 2020.

But it is possible that the Eurofighters could live on if Vienna is willing to purchase several two-seat versions and provide the aircraft with the capabilities to fire radar-guided, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles.Austria’s aircraft are currently only equipped with the infrared-guided IRIS-T short-range missile for air policing duties. The jets also lack electronic warfare systems in a bid to reduce purchase costs.

But Brigadier Karl Gruber, commander of the Austrian Air Force, said that continuing operations with the existing Austrian Eurofighter fleet would “involve cost risks that are difficult to quantify at present.”

Vienna describes the aircraft as having “inferior equipment” compared to other aircraft on the market. It said keeping them in service for another 30 years would likely cost taxpayers around €4.4-€5.1 billion ($5.025-$5.82 billion).

Austria’s experience with the Typhoon has not been a happy one. It introduced the aircraft in 2007 for air defense and air policing duties, replacing a fleet of Saab J35 Drakens. Vienna had originally planned to buy 18 aircraft, but the procurement became highly politicized when a new government voted in 2006 to cut the numbers, resulting in fraught negotiations with what was then EADS.

Critics have long argued that the jet is far too advanced for the country’s air policing needs.Last February, Vienna filed a criminal complaint against Airbus Group and Eurofighter GmbH, claiming that it was deceived by the two companies into buying the aircraft. It also questioned the two companies’ “true ability to deliver and true specifications of the Eurofighter interceptor planes.”

Vienna is claiming restitution from the two companies for the value of the 15 Eurofighters purchased plus the difference between the operating costs of the Eurofighter incurred to date and the hypothetical operating costs of an alternative aircraft minus the current value.

So far, the costs add up to €1.1 billion ($1.17 billion), the Austrian defense ministry said in February.

Defense Minister Hans Peter Doskozil said Austria needed to get the “escalating costs of the Eurofighter under control and minimize the enormous cost risks associated with it.”

The Austrian Air Force says it has evaluated 19 potential alternatives for the country’s air defense system. But its Active Airspace Surveillance studies concluded that a single fleet of supersonic fighters was the best way forward. It says the aircraft need to be equipped with “advanced self-defense system and guided missiles with all-weather capabilities,” suggesting it will invest in radar-guided, beyond-visual-range weapons.

“The debate on Austrian airspace surveillance has been dominated for years by the budgetary burdens associated with the operation of the Eurofighter,” Doskozil said. “The new concept for the active monitoring of our airspace is both cheaper and more militarily effective than the continuation of the status quo. It will save taxpayers’ money and enable us to monitor Austria’s airspace both by day and night.”

An Airbus spokesman told Aviation Week, “This is an Austrian defense procurement discussion and it is not for us to comment. However, the Eurofighter works very well for all other customers.”

Possible alternatives to Austria’s needs could include Saab’s JAS-39C/D Gripen, which is already in service with neighboring Czech Republic. Saab has identified Austria as a potential Gripen customer for several years. Other options include secondhand F-16s or perhaps an advanced trainer type such as the M346, although the aircraft is only capable of supersonic flight at high altitude.